A timeline of the BCCI and Lodha Committee reforms case
The following is a summary of the case from the time the committee was appointed.
Jan 2015 – Lodha panel appointed by the SC
The Court had appointed the committee to look into the functioning of the Indian board and suggest changes to its constitution.
Apr 14, 2015 – 82 questions for BCCI
The Lodha panel sends an 82-point questionnaire to the BCCI to understand how it functions and how it runs cricket in India.
The questions covered an exhaustive set of topics from the role of the BCCI’s stakeholders to the board’s election processes, the basis and formation of its various committees, player welfare, conflict of interest and transparency in the IPL’s functioning.
Jan 4, 2016 – Sweeping reforms unveiled
The Lodha committee recommends a complete overhaul of Indian cricket – from the very top down to the grassroots – affecting all its stakeholders.
With special focus on BCCI’s governance and administrative structures, rather than its cricketing operations, the most important set of recommendations aims at transforming the board’s power structure.
Mar 2, 2016 – BCCI details reservations against Lodha report
The BCCI files its affidavit, stating it has implemented some of the recommendations –
● appointing an ombudsman,
● addressing the issue of conflict of interest and
● advertising for a chief executive officer, a chief financial officer and other top management positions
– but also lists several it does not agree with –
● the one-state-one-vote rule,
● age cap of 70 years for an office-bearer or a board official,
● limits on an office bearer’s and
● restriction on advertisements during Tests and ODIs.
May 2, 2016 – ‘State associations will have to fall in line with Lodha reforms’
The Court makes it categorically clear that the BCCI and all of its state associations will have to implement the Lodha reforms.
July 18, 2016 – SC accepts majority of the Lodha recommendations
The Supreme Court rules in favour of implementing a majority of the Lodha Committee proposals, and gives the BCCI between four and six months to implement them. Lodha, the court says, will oversee the implementation process.
August 2, 2016 – BCCI appoints legal panel headed by Justice Katju, to liaise with Lodha Committee
The BCCI’s working committee approves a new legal panel as a “single point interface for the BCCI to interact with the Justice Lodha Committee” during the implementation of the report.
● Justice Katju calls the July 18 order of Supreme Court “unconstitutional and illegal”.
● The BCCI files a review petition in the Supreme Court against the July 18 order
September 12, 2016 – ICC refuses to get involved in BCCI-Lodha tussle
ICC’s chief executive David Richardson says that BCCI president Anurag Thakur had asked the global body to send a letter, asking the world governing body to clarify whether the reforms of the Lodha Committee did not amount to government interference in the running of the Indian board.
October 7, 2016 – Defiant state associations face funding cuts
In an interim order, the Supreme Court says no further money should be given to state associations unless they pass a resolution to implement the Lodha committee’s recommendations.
The interim order stated BCCI had adopted an “an obstructionist and at times a defiant attitude which according to the Committee are grossly out of order and may even constitute contempt.”
October 21, 2016 – Supreme Court limits BCCI’s financial freedom
The Supreme Court passes an order that limits the BCCI’s financial freedom and power until the board and its state associations comply with the Lodha Committee’s recommendations.
January 2, 2017 – Supreme Court removes Thakur, Shirke from top BCCI posts
BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke are removed from their posts by the Supreme Court of India at a hearing in Delhi. The court says a committee of administrators would be appointed on January 19 to oversee the business operations of the BCCI. That committee will be finalised by the pair of amicus curiae Gopal Subramanium and Fali S Nariman.
January 30, 2017 – Supreme Court names administrators to supervise BCCI
The Supreme Court appoints four eminent personalities from varying backgrounds to oversee the running of the BCCI until the board can hold fresh elections for office bearers as per the Lodha Committee’s recommendations. The panel consists of:
● Ramachandra Guha, the historian and cricket writer,
● Diana Edulji, the former India women’s captain,
● Vinod Rai, the former Comptroller and Auditor General of India, and
● Vikram Lamaye, CEO and managing director of IDFC
Source:
Indian Express, Jan 30, 2017 A timeline of the BCCI and Lodha Committee reforms case
